Locking-bolt latch for breakdown firearms



July 28, 1931. F. F. BURTON LOCKING BOLT LATCH FOR BREAKDOWN FIREARMS Filed Dec. 5. 1929 y Patented .ul'y 28, 1931 eli-iran srAres isiaeiz" y Parent caries i FRANK F.y BURHI-(IIN,` GF L'IOUNT CARLEL, CON-NEGTGUTE, ASSIGNR TO WNCHESTER- EPEATING ARMS COMPANY, OF NEVL7 HAVENQ CONNECTICUT, A CORPORPiT-IONYOE- BELAWARE LOCKING-BOLT' LATCH FOR BREAKDOW'N FIREiAillll'S4 Application filed December 3, 1929; SerialA No. 411,236;

This invention relates to improvement in locking-boltI latches for breakdown firearms and: has for its main object the provision of i a simple; convenient and reliable, manuallyt,fzop'erable ylatch for releasably holding the banni-locking bolt in its retired position when the;` same' is moved thereinto to permit the' barrel-uni'tto swinginto its broken-down position' with' respect to the frame-unit.

W'ith the foregoing and other objects in view', my' invention1 consists in a springpressedl locking-'bolt latchfor breakdown firearms characterized by having va portion thereof' conveniently: exposed vfor manual Hf:retirementy through a portiony of unitin4 "which it is mounted.`

invention furtherconsists in a lockingbolt latch for breakdown lii'earins character- Y ized? as above a'ndhavingcertain details of ggiconstructionf. and arrangement of parts as will be# hereinafter described and particulanlyrecited!in'` the claims. y

ln the acco'm'pai'iyingV drawings:

1 i'sa'V broken view,'partly in side elezsivation and partly in central longitudinal section, of. adouble-barreledbreakdown shotgun equippedi with my improved locking-bolt latcli; o

2isv a corresponding view with the goibarrel-unit shown in its broken-down position# Fig. 3 is a broken view' in' transverse horizontal section, taken: on. the line 37-3 df Fig.' 4:' is -a' vertical transversev sectional view'taken on thelinel-lof'Fig 2';

Figi 5@ is" an' enlarged-scale detached perspective view of the locking-bolt latchi Fig; 6 isla' sid'e' view ofthe barrel-locking 4nfboltf;an'd' l .Figi-7 isV an underside view of thesame.

The embodimentI of my invention herein chosen for4 illustrationl i555` as shown', .installed iin dbuble-barreled breakdown shotgun,

is though it is obvious that theuse'of my inventionis' not soilimited, since'it may beadvantageously. employed in connection' withV other types: of?" breakdowm firearms.

The" shotgun.' shown comprises the usual :mirante-body' 1.0i formed at itsi bottomv edge the framewith a forward extension 11 which in turn is formed with a longitudinal vertically'- arranged slotor passage 12 open at its upper and clcsed at its bottom end bythe forwarf.

trigger-'guard 14 within the looped form ofwhich a pair of triggers 15 are located. The' frame lf), as is usuai in iirearm construction,

is secured te the forward end of a butt-'stock 16 in any appoved manner.v f

To providefor pivoting the barrel-uniti end of a trigger-plate 13 having aand fore end 18, as well as otheriincidental featnuresj l providev a transverse trunrearwardly eXposed'Within the forward end of the said slot, as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings. o

The barrel-unitr is provided in its underside witfh a longitudinally-arranged depend- Gli' ing lug 20adapted to fit within the slot 12 of the frame-bodyiO, as clearly shown inl Fig. l of the drawings.

riChe forward end of the 1 lug 2O is formed with a forwardly-facing iy substant-ially-seinicircular transverse n-otcli 21 adapted to rock upon the trunnion-pin 19 before referred to; 1

VrFhe lower forward corner of the entension Y Acentri-ca'lly with the trunnion-pin 19 so th at the 11 of the frame 10 is roundedoif as at 22 conslice 23 of the fore end 18 will snugly iit against f the frame-body lO in ail positions of the barrel-unit in the swinging movement of 'the same with respect to the frame-body; the rear face'of the said shoe being formed,l as shown, with a cylindrically-contoured concave surface 24 conforming to the curvature of the surface 22 of the extension 11 and resulting inthe formation of a relatively-sharp toe 25;?

For the purpose of limiting the breakdown movement of the'V barrel-unit withV respect to the frame-bodyzlO, l employ a iloat- 1 f its bolt 32 mounted for movement in a horizontal bore 33 formed in the frame-body 10 and having its forward end intersecting the rear end of the vertical slot 12 before referred to.

The main portion of the locking-holt 32 is of cylindrical form and is provided at its rear end with a horizontal laterally-offsetting lug 34 formed in its outer end with a couplingnotch 35 for the reception of a cylindrcallycontoured operating-finger 35 depending from the underface of a substantially-dislililre operating-head 37 having a square axial bore 38 for the reception the squared lower end of the vertical shank 39 of a finger-lever 40 to which it is secured by a diametrical pin 41.

The finger-lever 40 extends rearward from the shank 39 kand is located, as is usual in breakdown shotgun construction, upon the upper face of the frame-body 10 and normally extends rearward over the upper face of the butt-stock 16, Cleary shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

For the purpose of normally urging the operating-head 37, together with tne shank 39 and finger-lever40, in a cloelzwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 3, and hence urging the nose 31 of the locking-holt 32 into the notch 28 of the lug'20, I employ a plunger 42 reciprocating in a rearwardly-opening socket 43 formed in the frame-body 10 (Fig. 3) and having a rearwardly-extending thrust-nose 44 of reduced diameter engaging` a radial thrust-face 45 upon the operatinghead 37. rThe forward end of the plunger 42 is formed with an axial stem 46 which is encircled by a helical spring 47 bearing atv its rear end against the forward end of the said plunger and at its forward end hearing against the bottom wall 4S of thesocket 43 before referred to.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the locking-holt 32 is constantly urged into forwardly-extended position by the spring 47 and that it may he retracted therefrom against the tension of the said spring by a swinging movement of the linger-lever 40 in the manner well known in the art of break-down firearms. Y

The forward fa-ce of the locking-nose 31 of the locking-bolt 32 is rearwardly and upwardly sloped to forni a cam-surface 49 adapted to loe engaged by a complementary cam-surface 50 formed at the lower rear corner of the lug 20 of the barrel-unit for the purpose of automatically retiring the said bolt, should it, perchance, be in its projected position when the barrel-unit is swung downward from the position in which it is shown in Fig. 2 to that in which it is shown in Fig. 1.

'llo releasahly hold tl e locking-bolt 32 in its retracted position (Fig. so as to minimize the effort required to swing the barrelunit into its locked position, I employ a locking-bolt latch 51 formed with a verticallyextending stem 52 and a horizontal forwardly-extending tripping-finger 53 and adapted at its rear upper corner to engage a latching-shoulder 54 formed in the underface of the locking-bolt 32.

t.) The latch 51 is adapted to reciprocate vertically in a passage 55 formed in the underface of the frame-cody 10 and intersecting at its forward end the slot 12 in the extension 11 thereef, shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings. The upstanding stem 52 of the latch 51 passes upward through a longitu-l dinal clearance-slot 56 extending diametrically through the locking-bolt 32 and bears at its upper end in a vertical passage 57 having its upper end opening upwardly and forwardly into aYsubstantially-vertical fingerclea Lce notch 53 formed in the standingbreach 59 of the frame-body 10 adjacent the junction thereof with the horizontal soalled table 60 constituting the upper face of the forward extension 11.

lt will be seen that the opening of the upper low upwardly-opening pocket 63 formed in' the upper face of the trigger-plate 13.

rEhe upward movement of the latch 51 under the urge of its spring 61 is limited by a transverse stop-'pin 64 extending transversely across the frame-body 10 and over the forwardly-projecting tripping-finger 53 of the saidlatch.

For the clearance of the locking-bolt latch 51 when the same is depressed either manually or automatically, vas will hereinafter appear, to disengage its rear upper corner from the latching-shoulder 54 of the lockingbolt 32, form the latter in its underface with a clearance-notch 65.

In the operation of the breakdown shotgun herein chosen` for the illustration of my invention, the user, when desiring to load the piece, swings the finger-lever 40 to the right' with the effect, through the intermedinera-:era:

ary of the parts 39, 37, 36, 35, and 34, of retracting the barrel-locking bolt 32 a distance suiiicient to disengage its nose 31 from the notch 28 of the lug 20, thereby permitting the barrel-unit to be swung into its brokendown position, as shown in Fig. 2.

Vhen the bolt 32 is retracted as just above described, the latching-shoulder 54 thereof is also moved rearward suiciently to permit the latch 51 to move upward under the urge of its spring 61 and efectually hold the said bolt in its retracted position when the manual pressure upon the linger-lever 40 is relaxed. Thus, not only is the barrel-locking bolt 32 latched in its retracted position but the lingerlever 40 is also held in its turned position into which it has just been turned to effect the break-down of the gun.

After loading the piece, the user swings the barrel-unit into line with the frame-unit in the usual manner and as the said barrel-unit approaches its home position, the upper wa'll 66 of a shallow notch formed in the rear lower corner of the lug 2O will engage the upper face of the trip-finger 53 of the latch 51 and depress the same against the tension of its spring 61, so as to disengage it from the latching-shoulder 54 in the bolt 32, with the effect of releasing the said bolt so that it may be projected forward by the spring 47 into the notch 28 of the lug 2O to lock the barrel-unit, and also with the eect of returning the nger-lever 40 to its normal position in line with the longitudinal axis of the gun.

In the event that the user of the gun wishes to separate the barrel-unit from the frameunit for the purpose of conveniently packing the taken-down gun in a case for transportation or storage, the tinger-lever 40 would upon such separation be held by the latch 51 in its laterally-turned position, since it is first necessary to unlock the barrel-unit as above described before the same can be separated from the frame-unit.

The retention of the finger-lever 4() in its laterally-turned position not only exposes it to injury during transportation but interferes to a large degree to the insertion of the frame-unit into a case. 1t is desirable, therefore, that the said finger-lever be returned into its normal position after the separation of the two units and it is for this purpose that the upper end of the stem 52 of the latch 51 is exposed for manual depression inthe fingerclearance notch 58.

After the separation of the units, the user may readily insert a thumb-nail or any other instrumentality into the notch 58 and depress the latch 51 with. the effect of permitting the Y spring 47 to swing the finger-lever 40 back into its normal position and incidentally at the same time permit the locking-bolt 32 to be projected forward until checked by the engagement of the rear end 67 of the clearancenotch 65 with the rear face of the latch 51.

Up'on reassembling ithefitwo aunts 'ftor .jfuir-y theruse ofthe gunfthe 'first downward:swing-` ing movement of the llbarreliurii't will cause the -camesur-face A50 :of the lug 20to engage the cam-surface -49 fof fthebolt 325s@ .as to forcibly retire fthe latter andipermituthe said 7'barreluni-t to be swung completely Linto`zits"-ho1ne position. lfllhere'after :upon .each 'unlockingoif the ba'ri'fel-unit the docking-bolt 32 will be lat'chedliin Iits retired' position ias before described.

I claim:

=1. 2a breakdown firearm, .the combination-with the vrelatvelypivoted `iframe-unit and 'barrel-unit thereof; :of a barrel-'locking bolt lcarried by the Asaid :frame-'unit fin .position to engage a :portioncf fthe-said barrelunit'tolock the same in place'- and formedwith a transverse passage.; andan automaticallyreleasable yspring-.pressed 'locking-bolt latch co-acting with .thesaid barrel-locking bolt l:to

hold the same `in :its :retracted position and having a portion extending through 1the :passage in the said bolt and :exposed through :a portion ofthe said frame-'unit 'for manual release.

2. 1n a breakdown fir'earm, the 'combination with the relatively-'pivoted trame-unit and 'barrel-'unit thereof; of a barrel-locking bolt carried'by the saidv frame-.unitiin .position to'engage aportionfofthesaid barrel-unit to lock the same in place and formed with-an elongated transverse passage; 'and an fautomatically-releasable spring-pressed lockingbolt latch co-acting withthe said barrel-locking bolt to hold the same vin its retracted .position vand jhaving a portion ettending througlrthe elongated 'passage inthe` said bolt and exposed for "manual release throughthe said 'frame-'unit adjacent the .junction fof theV hold the same in its retracted 1position :and

comprising a 1 stem fand -a tripping-finger, :the said stem extending through the transverse passage in the saidfbo'lt and exposed through a portion of the said frame-unit for manual release, and the said tripping-finger extending into the path of a portion of the said barrel-unit for engagement thereby.

4. In a breakdown firearm, the combinawith al transverse passage; and an automatically-releasable spring-pressed lockingbolt latch co-acting with the said barrel-locking bolt to hold the same in its retracted position and comprising a stem and a trippingnger, the said stem extending through the transverse passage in the said bolt and exposed for manual release through the said frame-unit adjacent the junction of the table and standing-breech thereof, and the said tripping-inger extending into the path of a portion of the said barrel-unit for engagement thereby.

5. Inra breakdown firearm, the combination with the relatively-pivoted frame-unit and barrel-unit thereof; of a reciprocating barrel-locking bolt formed with an elongated diametrical passage and carried by the said frame-unit in position to engage a portion of the said barrel-unit to lock the same in place; and an automatically-releasable springpressed locking-bolt latch eo-acting with the said reciprocating barrel-locking bolt to hold the same in its retracted position and comprising a vertical stem and a horizontallyoisetting tripping-iinger, the said vertical stem extending upward through the diametrical passage in the said reciprocating bolt and exposed through a portion of the frame-unit for manual release and the said horizontallyoffsetting tripping-finger extending forwardly into the path of a portion of the said barrel-unit for engagement thereby.

6. In a breakdown firearm, the combination with the relatively-pivoted frame-body I and barrel-unit thereof; of a finger-clearance notch formed in the standing-breech of the said frame-body; a barrel-locking bolt carried by the said frame-body in position to engage a portion of the said barrel-unit to lock the same in place and formed with a transverse passage; and an automatically-releasable spring-pressed locking-bolt latch comprising a vertical stem and a horizontal forwardly-offsetting tripping-finger, the said stem extending upward through the transverse passage in the said locking-bolt and into the said linger-clearance groove in the said standing-breech for manual release, the said tripping-finger extending into the path of a portion of the said barrel-unit for engagement thereby. Y

In testimony whereof, I have signed this specification.

FRANK F. BURTON. 

